Asia Times Online, 14 Mar 2009, Chan Akya
"An oft-repeated saying from the game of poker holds that "around the table, you should always know who the fish is. If you don't, it's you." In this case, the "fish" refers to the worst player on the table, the one who is effectively paying for everyone else's winnings.
Non-Japan Asia is the unfortunate fish in the global game of devaluation being played by the major economies: the US, the EU, the UK, Switzerland, Japan and so forth. In particular, export powerhouses such as China, South Korea and Taiwan really have it bad, as do the Southeast Asian economies as we enter the next phase of the economic slowdown in the global economy.
It is not just in terms of currency values that the Asians are being made out to be the fish in this game. Adding insult to injury, it is the savings of Asians that actually help fund the government bonds of the major world economies. As interest rates are pushed down along with a parallel shift in the value of the currencies, savers in Asia are getting the worst possible deal, namely a decline in both current income and future purchasing power."
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